The weekly Abeng newspaper (February 1 - September 27, 1969) was published in response to the Black Power and protest movement that emerged after the ban on Dr. Walter Rodney, the Guyanese and University of the West Indies historian, who was prohibited from landing in Kingston on October 15th, 1968 after attending a Black Writers conference in Montreal, Canada. Rodney was known in Jamaica for his lectures and talks on African history and the liberation movements in Africa. These talks were given not only on the campus but in communities of the urban and rural poor. The ban triggered protests by UWI students and the urban poor in Kingston and led to public debate about the state of Jamaican social, economic and political life. The Abeng newspaper‘s Managing Editor was Robert Hill (UWI graduate student) and other editors included George Beckford (UWI lecturer), Rupert Lewis (UWI graduate student) and Trevor Munroe (Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University). The Abeng group was a political centre for the Black Power movement, socialists, the independent trade union movement, Rastafarians, supporters of the opposition People’s National Party and people disaffected with the two main political parties. Abeng therefore became a focal point of critique and activism against the ruling Jamaica Labour Party and a harbinger of the radicalism in Jamaica in the 1970s.

The Prime Minister announ-
ced to his Labour Day audience
that terms had been arrived at with
WISCO to shift over from Salt River
to bulk loading at Rocky Point in
Clarendon. The terms are on the
whole fess favourable than those
suggested by the company to the
Douglas Commission a few years
ago. For example, displaced wor-
kers were to be set up in a modern
deep-sea fishing co-operative which
could have provided substantial in-
comes if it had materialized.

Instead, the new agreement
provides for severance pay for dis-
placed workers; and the only.ad-
ditional assistance is "if a worker
should get, say 2,000 as severance
and decides to invest up to 1,000
and decides to invest up to 1,000
to "start off" again, the company
will give him an additional 1,000
to the original 2,000."
The public does not yet know
the specific terms of the agreement.
How will severance pay be decided7
How many of the 123 workers are
likely to get as much as 2,000

severance pay? Who determines
what is "investment" for purposes
of getting the additional matching
funds? How will the agreement be
policed to see that workers get the
promised matching funds? All these
questions need to be answered be-
fore any displacement of workers
takes place!
The general terms outlined by
the Prime Minister suggest that dis-
placed workers will be really left
to catch-as-catch-can. The invest-
ment opportunities fnr a man with
with a 1,000 must be limited in

that part of the country. In arming
for example, no good land is avail-
able there; WISCO already has all
of it The company no doubt rea-
lizes that it will, by default nbt
have to pay out much in matching
funds. For it does not seem that
it is obliged to provide for advice
to these workers about possible in-
vestment opportunities.
Finally we are told that the
16 workers who will not lose their
jobs will be alloted a 40,400
block of shares in the company and
one representative on the hoard of

directors. What is the use of stares
in a company which claims it is
losing money? And what ran one
representative do on a hoard that
does not have the power to make
real decisions?
When we analyse the agrh
ment in this way, we see that it)
pure window dressing. King Sugq
has won another round at the ei
pense of the suffering Jamaican wt
king class. Once more, government
and the union seem contented wim
what seems to ihem to be a "lit
bit more."

bit mee.

Charles Gunther is aged 20 years
and is a welder employed by Owl,
Shirt and Gunther of Alpart Jam-
aica Ltd. He is also the only coild
of Anita Samuels of Nain popularly
known as "Sister Sam".
On the 1st Feb., 1969, Charles
went to buy a pack of cigarettes
from a neighbouring grocery shop
in Nain and in the process got into
a heated discussion with the shop
assistant, who at one point threat-
ened Charles with an ice pick, when
Charles complained that they were
delaying giving him his change.
A plain-clothes policeman eat-
ing in the shop at the time and a
friend of the proprietor ordered
Gunther out and when Gunther
protested, boxed him. A fight en-
sued between the policeman and
Gunther, which was broken up when
Gunther's mother, on arriving on the
scene, held Gunther around the

A special edition of "The
Black Man Speaks" magazine was
published. Its editorial spoke of the
barbarDous treatment meted out to
Africans in Jamaica and said that
"it is in the face of this immediate
threat to our life and well-being
that I and I as African youth must
resolve along with Africans every-
where, to support the efforts of the
O.A.U. in furthering African Unity
with the intention that out mother-
land he free from colonialism in

waist to "prevent him getting in
trouble".
While Gunther was in her arms
she heard a shot. felt blood on her
face. and felt her son go limp. They
both fell over, Gunther dying short-
ly after with a gunshot in his chest.
A report in the Star claimed that
Gunther was shot with a service
revolver by a policeman in self-
defence, whereas Dr. Hosa Kein of
Santa Cruz who performed the inqu-
est states that Gunther was shot by
a shotgun.
So far, no arrests have been made
by the police neither has any state-
ment been collected from Charles'
mother.
Local opinion suggests Charles to
be a young man of integrity, well
known and admired in his commun-
ity. Little wonder that the response
of the villagers to his killing was to
burn the grocery shop to the ground.

whatsoever 1 ,rm it takes."
Over 200 youths and Rasta-
farians gathered at Africa Hall to
celebrate All African Day (May 25)
This day was set aside by the Organ-
isation of African Unity to be obser-
ved as a day of unity by all Afri-
cans. Several speeches on African
culture and history were made and
these were followed by drum-chants
and the reading of a scene from a
play on the Mra-Mau rebellion,
which was very well received,

Once more two party demo-
cratic politics has launched a
vicious attack against the long-suf-
faring people of Jamaica. The latest
crime was committed at White Marl
just outside Central Village in St
Catherine.
ATTACKS ON THE PEOPLE
On both Monday May 19 and
Wednesday May 21, two squads of
men in Ministry of Housing trucks
arrived under a superintendent
from the ministry, trampled down
the people's crops and wrecked the
shacks of over 400 Jamaicas. As
a result of the attacks over 200
men, women and children of White
Marl are now without money, food
or shelter.
Most of the people attacked
by the iMinistry's strong arm men
had gone to White Marl originally
a few years ago after Shearer's state-
ment that the people could cultivate
any government land without moles
tation. As a result some 60 acres
of rock-stone land at White Marl
had been planted out with gungo
peas, tomato, pumpkins and other
market crops by the small cultiva-
tors. In addition, the White Marl
brothers had built roads into the
hinterland to allow easier access

to their cultivation. Now the people
there want to know whether govern-
ment will compensate them for the
destruction of the products of their
labour.
MCNEIL'S CONSTITUENCY
The latest attack follows an
assault against the people's houses
which took place on March 21,
three days after the local govern-
ment elections. At that time the
JLP Councillor for the area, Brown
lost the election to PNP Ivy Wil-
liams. After the destruction of the
houses, most of which were un-
occupied, the citizens led a deputa-
,tion to Rov McNeil, the M.P. for
the area. The only answer the
people got from McNeil was the
further waves of violence against
them last week. The Abeng reporter
was told by one White Marl suf-
ferer that the attack was even more
vicious since White Marl people did
not vote PNP as most of them had
no vote because no voter registra-
tion took place there. Residents of
the area also reported that the few
cultivators of the area who had
JLP branch cards were given money
to leave before the assault took
place.
SYMPATHETIC POLICE
The two truck loads of

official hooligans were protected b
three jeeps, two trucks and r,
radio car of armed police leC
two Kingston Inspectors.- Som.,
the police were so outraged by tS
injustice that they secretly exr
sed sympathy to the people
said they had to take orders. ,
fact one constable is reported t4
have shed tears when a mother plea
ded with him that she had nowhe
to shelter herself and her serve
children!

LAND TO OWN
The people now have no-
where to go nor cash to buy in-"
thing. They say the atteHi
was criminal because 'Jamaic;-,,
cannot squat on what is their ot iw.
They cannot understand the extc !se
government gave them that the i4?d
is needed for "development." Stme
say that they hear that it is Mataon
& Tourism which will take 6er
the land after they have beenan
ally pushed off.
Whatever happens though
people expressed a determinr-,
to have nothing to do with f
nao politics and demanded let
own not to lease or "squat" i
that more political gangsters
victimise them again.

SANTA CRUZ POLICE KILLING

THIS COULD BE

YOUR SON

WHITE MARL : SECOND WAVE

ATTACK ON THE PEOPLE

artICAN YOUTH IARMI

ALL-AFRICA DAY

.it requires that the force has to be extra careful in carrying out your duties that no case is
established easinst you since up to now none has been,"
Shearer speaking recently at the Police Federation Meetill

MARCUSGARVRY

"

r

MAY 1938

PART TWO

THE FAILURE

OF REBELLION

BY

"HISTORIAN'" GRASSROOTS ORGANISATION
One of the dimensions of political activity
in Jamaica in 1938 which requires a lot of
investigation is the question of organisation at
the grassroot level. The masses were not nece-
arily the shapeless lump which the very name
seems to suggest.
The 130s witnressd rhe emergence of
numerous orgaioositons, in awhih i would seem
that returning migrant's itrom ie L.S A., Cuba
and Cenrral \mcrica orten pla-ed an important
leadership role. Sone, uf them are airi well-
known already, hke tie National Reform Asso
ciation and tie Federation of Citizens' Asso-
ciations. These ere, however. middle class
organisalionl. We need to know far more about
other group, like the Workers and Tradesmee's
Union, the Universal NegroImprovement Aso-
ciation (which founded a nse Division. Harnio-
ny. in Ma\l 1 l,) the Jamaica Protective Asso
citation. the Jamaica Labour Partv (formed in
April I 19 and thus antedating Bustamante's
by six years the Artisan's Federated Union
the Social Reconstruction League and the Jam-
aica Permanent Development Convention,to
name ony some of them.
It is evident that many such groups were
o rmed b petit bourgeois elements like shop-
keepers and small contractors, and were con-
cerned with economic "self-help" and mutual
protection against big business. Nevertheless,
even tirese "ere much closer to the masses than
anything that had gone before ('with Bogle and
Bedward as exceptions, in so far as they had
permanent organiiaions). Nor is it a necessary
detraction from theii significance that their
membership was obviously small in most cases
Their emergence in the 1930s ia sign that at
some Ioner levels of the class hierarchy a con-
efiousness was beginning to evwge which could
only in the end fin4 itself opposed to existing
power stnuctues. This orgaain.ional activry
was the itrsr signs of actively testing their
cmorging conscou-sness against the colonial
reality which was to have important future
repercussions.
RURAL QRTANISATlI(OS
All of tis activity, however, wal qrba itin
nature, Whailver Oewm censciouatsess ragy have
begun to develop ia the towns, there is little
sign of new organisMlipnal dwelopmens in the
rnral cares. Yet there was one important eyaept-
ito. andfurther research may show it not 1t
have been unique.
Appartly eadry in 1938, Robert E.
Rumble founded the Poor Man's Improvement
Land Settlement and Labour Association in
Upper Clarendon. This seems to have been a
squatters' organisation, and it became involved
in court cases regarding tenants at Trout Hall

and Cocoa alk. In a petition to the Governor
dated 23 Aprl. 1938, it claimed 800 members.
Ideologically it was comparatively advanced,
since Rumble drew his views on land, rent and
taxes from the writings of Henry George, and
was in touch with the Henr George Foundation
in London. Such an organization is obviously
of great signicanice. and it is extremely inter-
esting that it seems to have played no signitcant
part in the May-June disturbances, something
which, if it is definitely true. will require expla-
nation.
THE INFLUENCE OF GARVEYISM
The other political dimension at the mass
level .vhilch needs further 'sudv is the influence
of the Garveailte movement after the departure
of the I under irom Jamaica in toli Garve-
himself had in his last years in the island been
turning his attention more specifically than
before to problems of poverty and unemploy-
ment and trade union organisation. Neverthe-
less, the development of Garievism after 1935
is ambivalent. On the one hand. in terms of
those who remained linked wlith the formal
'.N-I.A. structure, it tended icreasfnrgl to
express the aspirations of the petit bourgeoisir
and the less successful of the black bourgoisne,
whose concern was with such forms of economic
organisation as banks and loan societies. thich.
would provide capital and enhance their busi-
ness competitiveness. Thus already by 1938
Garveyites were prominent in groups ike the
Protective League and the Permanent Deelop-
mern Convention. It is significant in this respect
that there was a noticeable influx of leading
U.NI.A. members into the P.N.P after Sept
ember 193.
On the other hand. Garvevism in the
broadest ideological sense, with its emphasis
on blackness. Africa and Ethiopia, had its effect
on the sufferers. For the reasons discussed in,
an earlier section, it is at this level that it is
most difficult to obtain information, but one
can at least cite the most obvious example. the
Rastafari movement, which owed its. origin. in
part at least, to a feedback from Garvevism in
Central America and the U.S.A. By March 1938
Rastafari was becoming significant enough to
provoke a judge's remark on "the undoubted
nuisance the Rastafari people were becoming",
and mi the same month there were police raids
on cult members in different parts of the island.
Though at'present I know of only one instance
of explicit Rastafarian (or Rastafarian-typg)
participation in the events of May-June 1938,
there is no doubt that this aspect of the von-
sciousness of the masses requires very careful
study.
1938, REBELLION OR REVOLUTION?

I would distinguish a
rebellion from a revolution along two main
lines. First, rebels accept the prevailing social
values, particularly those concerning the class
system. What they are seeking to. do, in fact,
is to restore those values-or, more accurately,
an idealized version of them-maintaminrg that
they have been flouted Revolutionaries, on the
other hand. assert against existing values a
counter-eonsciousness with values of its own.
Second, rebels do hot seek major structural
change; they desire either minoa arjiustmnts,
or else that the system should work in the ideal
ised fashion which its own ideqloy (values)
suggests that it should. (The rebels may: of
course, be seeking both things.) tgeylutiotagers
believe that their ultimate aims in terms of their
new values can only be achieved if existing
strictures are destroyed and rebuilt. A furt
rider might be added to those distiectitos. It
follows from the twhlt question of eoautwia
nes tla the aims of revolutionaries oar" likely
to be far mote eloarly'articulited than thors
of re*ls
There can be little doubt that the events
Of May-June 19358 it J-atra wie reeollioUas
rather than, revttohoiury, The tmikers and
detnepastratorsweredqumatdiaogly those tbiSip
which they believed the exioliag system to be
cantble of giving ther-hiajssr wages, more
work and rure land. In objecJiye terms the
system was in fact capable of raising wages, and
did so, for dockers, banana and sugar workers,
and P.LV4labourers.

We must have grave doubts, however, whe-
ther the system was in 1938 capable objectively
of providing more work. or substantially increas-
ing the amount of land in the hands of peasant
farmers. More especially, in the latter case, it
may be doubted whether the existing system
was capable of providing credit and marketing
facilities, which would be needed to establish
peasant farming as the dominant sector of the
economy, which would have been the only
permanent solution to the unemployment prob-
lem. Certainly, although we cannot go intothe
matter here, the next few years saw the failure
of the much-trumpeted "New Deal" in land
settlement first announced on 5 June. Thus,
what the rebels believed the system capable of
granting them. it in fact substantially could
not: this is the basic contradiction in the whole
situation.

Thus. while the situation in Jamaica in
1938 was in terms of the consciousness of the
masses, only a rebellion, its movement was that
of revolution. The system could only have met
the demands of the masses if there had been
major economic and social changes, in other
words revolutioa; thus, the suffeisre were resvl-
utionary in spite of themselves

Two essential pretqolisites were missing
from the sluattloa if revolt tiln was in fact to
com abott- a new consriosntaess on the part
of the suffeters which they could oppose to
exestiig values, andr a, osgardation to lead

In 193b, thco the polities of protest was
rebelhnous.a t itr yet revolutionary. For it to
have been revolutionary, much depended upon
the policy adopted by the colonial adinistaat-
ion and by the upper and middle efaases. Force
was ~ofeor, se part 6f this pocey, with the police
backed oip by gin platoons of the .Sherwood
Foresters and nearly 5,000 armed Special Con-
staler, and two cruises of 'te Royal Navy
standing' offshore., Conesloonst' were another
part-the appointment of'the Conciliation Boa-
td. its wUitk ia persuadint emplyist t grant
wage increase, ftinadlls t afinuieemenm of the
Neow lDeaf inland- The piFraitoetay, obviously
alarmedi by events, concurred in al this, at
least m, public, no maort eactiuearya voe was
heard.

lrtinntiroby pianttorl ard adtisbitr
ors realised the line lta take-,sapate he
workerss" from the "Ihatons" andI gant fimit-
ed concessions tq be wie a supp the
other. Thus the Resident Nastrate of St. C -
einte made this pefectly plia in the, ciqrs of
charging a grou of aleggd rilagm Rcqopsinl
that men had a right to expect wor, i avas-
able (an important rpseti) e ni "a fair
n uling wage", he remindpi the "wortig class
that

Putting this linbae at prlctte, Ut powers
tharthe turned to Cioarli Maidey and-aftl
jinItt beianir-Bumtaante. WIh this was
initiated the whole policy of building a "legi-
imnate" latour moment, which the lew exM-
labour leaders, the emerging middle clasf leaders,
and the government all now felt to be essential.
Thus the. "politIcs protet" was met
by the "politicsafonlrol."

YOUTH REVOLUTION IN JAMAICA

This is the concluding section of an article by the same name which
first appeared in the magazine LIJ, formerly 'Youth Move'. ABENG
urges all its readers to try to get hold of copies of LIJ and also to show
it to their friends. It represents a new and important stage in the
development of the Black Struggle in Jamaica.

ECONOMIC The question of power today lies
in economic control. The capitalists are in
control of the economic production of Jamaica
today, and so tihey control not only trade but
political decisions as well. Tlus leads to uneven
progression in local facilities, to the building iup
of hotels, businesses and tiniacial institutions
such as banks investment corpuralions etc. This
build-up of capitalist facilities is carried out to
the detriment of the poor man. Tie expansion
of programmes to assist the wage-earner in
attaining a better standard ot living is entirely
dependent upon tihe fringe bene its of the rich
man's advancement, yet man Jamaicans still
believe that we are indebted to the foreign
investor.
A study of tie economic situation of Jam-
aica will show that more money is being taken
out of the country by foreigners than is invested
by them. Such arguments as the creation of
numerous jobs by foreign investment don't hold
any water. For example, the bauxite industry
employs 5.000 Jamaican workers, while bet-
ween 50,000 and o0,00 jobs are created in
America and Canada by our bauxite. AWe only
mine the bauxite, but the real jobs and the real
money are in the industries which convert the
bauxite to alumina, and such industries as cai
manufacturing and construction materials which
make feasible the use of alumina. Bauxite in its
raw state is useless. Another interesting tact is
that the revenue government receives from
bauxite in the form of royalties and taxes is far
exceeded by the amount of money that expat-
nates send to their iammnles in Jamaica from

abroad. So e are a ot earning any real mi neyr
trm our bauxite, and ever year we hear "a
record amount of bauxite was mined from
Jamaica." At the present rate of extraction, our
bauxite will be finished within 25 \' ars Does
anyone believe that the foreigner ill still be
around when our raw material is finished' Will
they help us then'
Clearly, such industries as bauxite and
agriculture must come under national control
to ensure that the major benefits are related to
the progress of Jamaica. Ibis step cannot be
taken under the present system of alliance to
America. Jamaica is fast being sold out to for-
eigners, and this exploitation must cease no1w.
The power to do this lies solely within the
youth revolutionary movement.
RELIGIOUS Perhaps this aspect should have
been discussed earlier, as it coincides with the
awakening of the people Nevertheless, as a
result of its importance, religion will be discuss-
ed here.
The question is really the as,,.adnce or
rejection of Christianit.y not whether Jesus
Christ was God or not. Now, according to the
white people, Christ iwas a w ite man who lived
many years ago in a white man's country. Dur-
ing lus life he preached to white people about
white concepts and white conditions, There is
no link whatsoever with black people. History
shows that before undertaking the subjugation
of any foreign people, they sent their mission-
aries with the message of Christ to their intended
victims. They did so in Africa, thev did so in
Central Amenca-in North and South America.
The missionaries presented natives with a meek.
passive and upright image. Their devoutness was
especially appealing, since the Indians of the
Americas and the black man of Africa held
their gods in high regard.
Then came the soldiers and the natives
were confused. How come the first white
visitors tell as of God and the righteous path.
while the second white visitors sneak of war'

Look how they rape our women and destroy
our life. What manner of people are these'
Questions left unanswered for the Indians were
wiped out and the Acans exploited. Slavery
was set up and the white man mixed slavery and
religion. African slaves were not allowed to
worship their own gods, and the religious needs
of our forefathers were such that Jesus Christ
was accepted.
Today, the white has almost totally re-
jected the concept of religion for thai of mater-
ial gain. And yet black people still hold onto the
lie that a white god shall come bursting through
the clouds and save all righteous people. In the
words of Uncle Tom '"ain't no white man
gonna do nothin for no black man."
Tile role of the Christian church today is
purely a social effort. During the reign of
Christianits, in keeping with the doctrines i~
Christ. no church could own anything, as theft
church is dedicated to poor people. The others
Sunday some sufferers were sitting beside the
school building owned ys at. Peier & Paul
Catholic church, watching a cricket match ot
Providence grounds. The white man who woull
have us cali him 'Father' brought a policeman,
to remove us from 'his land'.
The Christian Church is a fiasco, and must
be dealt with as such. We have no need of a
godhead. for black man is here greater than
any man ever born.

The revolution that we, the youth,'ae'
undertaking is a total upheaval of all that
went before us in an effort to finally remove
the mental chains of slavery. We want nothing
to stand that is not originated by us in our own
interests. The revolution need not be feared,:
for it has happened in France, in England,
Germany, Russia. China, and is happening in
Africa now. It need not be violent, and it need
not fail. But it must be total and it MUST
COME.

SUGAR WORKERS

DECLARATION

On Friday 18th April at about 5.00 p.m. a squad of
policemen from Harmon Barracks invaded a sector of
Brown's Town in Eastern Kingston and brutalized the
youths in the most vicious way.
The invaded sector is called Dunkirk. This is a sector
which is no different fo any other place where the oppressed
live. Poverty, unemployment, police brutality is the order
of the day to the youths of this area. But the power struc-
ture has built up this area to be a so-called dangerous area
to society so they can carry out their acts of victimization
under the cloak of seeking out criminals.
The youths of Brown's Town and many other areas
of Eastern Kingston have already shown the Structure the
route they will take, the route of "Black liberation"-so
that's, the reason for the increase in victimization by the
GARDEN BOYS of Imperialism, the Police.
Well on the 18th they came as usual armed to the
teeth, moving through different sectors of the slums beating
and kicking until they reached a yard where some youths
were gathered reasoning. They were there because they had
a right to be there, most of them are residents in the said
yard. Well the "white-hearted" squad of death entered the
premises where the youth were, like common thieves scal-
ing the fences and the gate.
They entered and started to earn their pay by brutal-
izing Black youths who are guilty of no other crime than
the search for their heritage and culture-if that's a crime.
They whipped and punched the youths like the slave
masters of old, then proceeded to drench them with basins
of water from a nearby pipe, saying that the youths wanted
baths. One youth was beaten with gun-butts without mercy
and many others had cuts and bruises after the police had
left.
This is just one of the many acts of brutality that has
been taking place in Eastern Kingston. Recently a Brother
was shot at Rockfort on the pretence that he had robbed
a policeman 3,whie two others were arrested in a so-called
running gun-dual. Brothers in Franklyn Town, Rollington
Town and Rae Town also are feeling the "butt" of police
brutality. The Power Structure is afraid because they can't
bribe us with S notes so they have given the order to clean
up. But they are wasting their time, there can only be one
path for us the Black, oppressed youths of not only Eastern
Kingston, but the entire Jamaica-freedorn under progress-
ive Black leadership and an end to White Imperialist
domination.
Once again we turn to the people's own ABENG to
disclose without fear the injustices being committed by the
yard-hoys of oppression, thle police, and once more for
united support by all youths for ABENG.
AII:NG is Garvey's Il.ACKMAN returned.
D)1:MOtRAT

The Parliamentary Unions have divided
our strength in two. One half theu give to the
white foreign WISCO. one half to black suffera-
tion; and the dues they keep for themself.
There is no strength capable of leading
Sugar Workers as the strength of Sugar Workers
themselves. But can any people be strong when
they are divided in two? Regain our strength
through a Workers Council on every farm, in
every factory, in every village. A Sugar Workers'
Council is a body of five or more Sugar Workers
who meet regularly to work out their day to
day working problems of life and who, united
and together, establish their headquarters of
authority of their Union in their own area of
work and living.

Visit Clancy's for the latest in
Foreign and local Records.
Open until 9 pm. everyday.
___

12 Records
122 Orange St. Kgn. jamoico.

GET IT FOR LESS

THE BROOKLYN STORES

19 & 10h SLIP ROAD.

Textiles, Ready-to-war, Knitwear and Footear

Tel. 27278 Preo, .0. GUNTLEY

SUGAR WORKERS

TRIAL

We try the B.IT.U. with the P.N.P. Governmr
We try the N.W.U. with theJ.L.P. Governm4
We try the 8.I.TU. with the J.LP. Governm'
We try the N.W.U with the P.N.P. Governmr
We try joint representation with the P.,.
Government
We try joint representation with the J.I
Government
We try them on the farm
We try them in the factory
We try them as our union leaders
We try them as our political leaders
We try them as our Government leaders
We try them as our opposition leaders
We try them as our negotiators
We try them as our tribunal representatives
We try them as our contract signers
We try them for thirty-one years
We try NOW for ourselves
--~--------- I

UOne m-re ordinary people throughout
J"irnica swar v.itten to the Abeng about their
rfpernorice o' police violence. While the offi-
cial, in soc :v create hysteria about criminal
violence, it is increasingly clear that violence
is pouring trim the top down and not the
'her way around. In fact, the accounts of
f: e pcopi suggest that the police ate the most
v -lent section of our society.
This is nothing new. Throughout our
i ";tory as suf oration produced resistance from
tr.c black man, the slaveowner passed new
laws to oppress the people. So that historically
in Jamaica the rule of law has meant the
administration of injustie. And since black
people haer never been prepared to take in-
justice without protest, the slaveowners always
had to use official violence to back up his
on-sided laws
In fact. the present police force was
created to keep black people in their place
after the Morant Bay rebellion showed that
we would challenge the regime of oppression
whatever thi cost, The white historian of colon-
ial police tells us that in Jamaica "the estab-
ment of organized police forces was due .. to
a well-Justified fear on the part of the governing
class that the existence of this mass of... dis-
contented people offered a serious threat to

law and order" (Sir Charles JeffriesThe Colon-
ial Police p,60).
Today the threat is more serious because
we art more conscious, discontent is greater
and "lsew and order" continues to benefit only
a few people in the society. In the face of thin
the white power structure is so insecure that
it considers every hlack man a threat,
TlIe tragedy is that thcse police are black
people too who don't know thcmelves yet.
In tie meantime they have their problems too.
To get promotion they must show how effi
cient they are at beating black people. Fur-
thermore, themselves oppressed, they vent their
anger on the mot conscious and proud of us -
primarily the youttl. By so doing however.
they are not correcting their own problems
In fact, the police arc making their jobs more
dangerous and the white power structure more
dinaky by beating into the people the reali-
zation that violent attack on them is the
purpose of saffig the society with thoeN mercenar
On the face of our history therefore
only our middle class people will be surprised
at what is happening today. If they really
believe in equality before the law, then they
must protest this wave of police violence against
the people. The sufferer will have no alternative
but to respond.

I BLOWTHE HORKN

S I I ORN
A TELL TE PEOPLE

ABENG MUST NOT ICNOBE AFRICA

1 am glad that All Africa Day was
remembered by Africans in Jamaica. I am
sad that Abeng was not the organ to
broadcast and highlight the meaningful-
ness of that day. It is had that Aheng
ignores Africa.
On the other hand you played tip
Labour Day, a day which disenchaims
black people and in whose esteem it has
been toppling for a number of years, lali
ing on its bottom in 'h" with an inaudible
and elongated poop.
We value highly the intellectuals and
collegiircs in our struggle, for they it in
who must carry out much of the technole-
gical adjustments of Africans in the West
but to those for whom relevant service of
black man's long established aspirations
is too restrictive or mundane a role, I
offer the lesson of their most valid proTro
type, Dr. Walter Rodney,
. Humble yourselves in the retaliation
that no collegiate has yel attained the
standard or level of activity and involve-
ment that this man exemplified, )Largely
because of the difference of sacrifice and
sincerity between the immune Jamaicans
and this exposed non-Jamaican.)
2. Appreciate that the Black Mass is
ideologically, culturally and organised-
wise ahead of the theoreticians and their
only contribution is to catch up, use the
methods ot analysas and assessment wlicl
they have learnt from Babylon to f- *out
what has been in Black people's mind
already, and then with the prestige and
status which the system aifluds the stud-
led mteellectual they must articulate our
philosophy at the levels where the suffer-
er's voice is not heard or is nor eloquent
share the scientific methods rather than
the theories which tempt you to assume
leadership and impose pet ideas.
3 Learn ad teach that ours is nut merely
a class struggle to be waged by a prole-
tariat, but in addition and also overwhel-
mingly a cultural, spiritual and mental

struggle being waged by a race, a nation;
Africa,
MAROONS, MARCUS,
MOTHER AFRICA
Black Power is not merely Socialism
painted a darker shade, Is not just an
economic solution for Black Man's suffer-
ing, but treatment prescribed by Time for
what we diagnose as a physical blow and
a mental ailment inflicted upon Africa
hv the white world. Because Universal
Adult Suffrage offered us hope, our most
progressive sentiments have been express-
ed in socialism, Since then we have come
to appreciate that the consequences of the
slave trade, although that trade grouped
us together as a working class, necessitates
a cultural renaissance, more than an econ
omic reform so much so that we chose
as a symbol of the new stage of our strug-
gle the Aheng.
I. The Abheng is tire messenger of the
Maroons the most intense African free-
dom fighters in our history. Maroon means
stranded, for these heroes regard them-
selves to the status of runaway slaves
They said "we're not merely working
class".
2. Marcus Garey has been heralded in
these pages as the father of Black Power.
Yet his whole theme, thai of "Back to
Africa", lia not been dealt with, even
where it provides for a spiritual return.
wlile remaining in the West. His motto
"One (lud, One Aim, One Destiny" referr-
ed to the far lugn parts of a world-wide
A tinca
3. The mutilation of subject matter like
African Battlehe is obviously prompted
foi the glamour impact rather than for
our participation as Africans, thus the lack
of parallel drawn between continental
struggle and the story of the Maroons,
Paul Bogl, Henry 1'40 and Black Pan-
thers. The O.A U is ignored as a coord-
inator or simply as an African monument.

NEXT WRE

Thase three sets of circumMtances
demonstrate that there is no lack of aware-
nes of the paramounirtimport of Africa
in out fare but merely a soundingout of
what the "sufferer" will be impressed by.
We have an permission to mark
trimne With sensationalism, we have no
Pace to equivocate,
ABENG BELONGS TO BLACK MAN
We are not hopeless because it is

lhe rate can increase, not because of
impatience, but through the work of more
man. Abeng belongs to Black Man. Abeng
came into existence because of African
needs and Abeng will continue to xist
in spite of threats because it will continue
to e protected by African Unity. It is
not enough for man to write ten times
the amount of letters. It iseoough though.
through Abeng to recruit workers, and
after it is known who is ready, work is
shared, be it writing, printing, distributing,
reaching, protecting, contacting. On the
other hand the population cannot become
completely organised around Abeng. The
people have long been organised around
themselves. Although Abeng belongs to
the people, we do net object to the trust-
eship of its directors as long as the
direction is faithful, as long as they recog
nise themselves to be a Coummission of
Enquiry io reveal the African cons it nce
which ready exists
To those who see every criticism AR -W F rq
as an attack on personality. I would say
tris Withdraw from this race. the AFRI-
('AN RAhE.
I am
An African
Bongo Jere